French study bolsters hopes antibodies protect against COVID-19, even after mild infections

Researchers at France's Pasteur Institute and university hospitals in Strasbourg said Tuesday that in a study of 160 doctors and nurses who experienced mild cases of COVID-19, all but one developed antibodies that could prevent reinfection within two weeks. The preliminary findings, not yet peer-reviewed, bolstered hopes that patients who survive the new coronavirus, even if they never got seriously ill, would be protected. Almost all of the volunteers in the study had produced antibodies capable of neutralizing the virus within 41 days. Pasteur's Arnaud Fontanet and his colleagues suggested that the findings support the use of antibody tests.